


Lights Out and I'm Home

by KatnapKradle



Category: Servamp (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Cuddling, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Protective Kuro | Sleepy Ash, Thunderstorms, can be read as platonic, ending is cheese, greed pair are just barely in there so don't expect much from them, if there's anything that needs to be tagged please let me know, kind of introspective?, long time reader first time uploader
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2020-10-04
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:26:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26806582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KatnapKradle/pseuds/KatnapKradle
Summary: “... How come you never told me you were afraid of thunderstorms?”“It’s stupid...”“So is being afraid of the vacuum cleaner.”--Kuro's inner musings on his Eve's opinion of him take a backseat to more immediately pressing matters.
Relationships: Kuro | Sleepy Ash & Shirota Mahiru, Kuro | Sleepy Ash/Shirota Mahiru
Comments: 9
Kudos: 147
Collections: Everything, Servamp





	Lights Out and I'm Home

**Author's Note:**

  * For [PuffPuffPastry](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PuffPuffPastry/gifts).



> Written for Mahiru_Of_Trust's birthday. First serious one-shot in a long time and where I hit my stride shows lol. Thank you for reading!

Mahiru, Kuro thinks, is... Reckless. Careless with his own life. An idiot, even if he's a well meaning one. Modeling the behavior of a hero, wanting to be one so badly, that he ignores his own safety and the fact that a decent chunk of his friend group is composed of monsters. It's bewildering to think that being attacked by vampires garners no more than a startled shout before Mahiru is falling into the now familiar routine of battle, Kuro slinking to his side with a sigh and more determination than his weary posture shows, and yet something as mundane, normal, _human,_ as a non-magically infused _gun_ has him quaking.

(He snorts at the following realization that his idiotic Eve is more fearful of a regular-old firearm than he's ever been of any of C3's weaponry, despite both being about as equally lethal to a human.)

But, well, all things considered... He can't help but wonder if Mahiru isn't just hiding whatever kind of fear he may feel. It's not as if the boy is blind. Shounen protagonist wannabe or not, Mahiru has seen firsthand just how monstrous vampires can be. Mahiru has seen the aftermath of massacres. Has seen Lily lose his mind in the wake of being broken ( _Has seen **you** lose your mind, too,_ a traitorous little voice in his head oh so helpfully supplies.) Has seen the desperation of the dying, witnessed the spray of blood as one of his own best friends is attacked before his eyes, how they shrug off things like being impaled upon swords and having limbs hacked off.

And Kuro wants to ask.

_Aren't you afraid?_

He nearly does it aloud, once, after some roughhousing (emphasis on rough) between Lawless and Licht nearly catches Mahiru in the crossfire and Kuro’s first instinct is to make himself a living shield, coattails and claws alike brandished and a snarl almost, _almost_ , curling his lip, before his mind catches up enough to realize that he just made a threat display at what were quite possibly two of the people least likely to hurt any of them (excluding each other). He'd known that he had been stressed out beyond imagination, on alert and twitchy to any kind of threat that may come their way (something he knows the other Servamps have picked up on, as well as they're able to read his moods even after so long apart) but that was... He doesn't think he could feel more ashamed if he tried.

Lawless is staring at him, Licht similarly frozen for but a moment. Kuro wants a hole to open and swallow him up.

And then Licht’s kicking Lawless behind the knee hard enough that he nearly goes down, and, despite the glare Greed sends the pianist’s way, it’s clear that whatever message Licht intended to convey got through just fine because the next second, Lawless is sheepishly apologizing for them not being more careful about just who might be in the way.

Kuro freezes up, curling in on himself and muttering his trademark “can’t deal…” even as Mahiru brushes the minor incident off, stepping out from behind him with a placating hand on his arm. He ignores the sidelong look his Eve gives him, afraid of what he’ll find in his expression, and instead prepares to tune out the inevitable lecture the Greed Pair are about to receive about not trashing people’s homes, and how if they have to fight, at least take it outside. The usual sort of thing that happens whenever the two choose to visit. It's achingly familiar at this point, and Kuro feels some of the tension leave his shoulders.

Even so, he spends the rest of the evening as a cat, enduring Licht’s endless doting over “Neko-san” and Lawless’s even more endless complaints over Licht’s endless doting. By the time they leave (he makes a mental note to thank Kranz for being a diligent babysitter), it’s nearly pitch black out. A quick look out the window tells him to check the weather app on Mahiru's phone. The ninety percent chance of thunderstorms all throughout the next day has him grimacing, already anticipating the way the teen will huff and moan about his laundry schedule being thrown off.

Comfortable in the knowledge that his fellow Servamp is leaving, he allows himself to return to human form once more, only half listening to what's being said as Mahiru's sees them both off.

“Ah– I forgot that it’s supposed to storm tonight. Oi, Angel-chan, you’ve got an umbrella in your backpack, don’t you?”

“Of course I do.”

“Great! Hand it over!”

“ _Hah_?”

“If I let _you_ hold it, you’re just gonna let the water spill onto my shoulder!”

“Tch... Catch pneumonia and die already for all I care.”

“Oi?! Lichtan!! ... Ah, whatever, it’s probably some ultra lame, ultra cutesy-- Don’t try and kick me!”

The rest of their argument becomes too muffled to hear clearly as Mahiru shuts the door on them, pinching the bridge of his nose and muttering something about disturbing the neighbors. Kuro sinks down further into his seat, watching with some small amount of confusion the newly stiff way Mahiru seems to be moving. The curtains are drawn tight over the large sliding glass door that leads out to the balcony, and when his Eve turns back to face him, he quickly flicks his eyes back down to the screen in his hands.

It’s bothering him.

It’s almost like...

“Mahiru. Are you--”

His words are lost in the clap of thunder that interrupts, and don’t come back in light of the _yelp_ Mahiru lets out. It’s loud, and sharp, and while he tries to play it off... Kuro knows him well enough, he thinks, to note the very real fear behind it. More than just being startled.

It’s enough to give his suspicions more weight. Outside, the sky opens up for a torrential downpour. Personally, he’d always found the sound of storms to be soothing. Mahiru’s subtly shaking hands tell him his Eve doesn’t share his sentiments.

He doesn’t know what to do.

Much like every other time he was unsure of himself and his actions, life takes the decision out of his hands, this time via knocking the power out. An annoyed click of the tongue. At least he can soothe himself somewhat in the knowledge that comes with knowing the neighbors are going through a similar annoyance. He can still see the very faint edges of city nightlife glow peeping out from the line between curtain and glass, so he also feels safe in assuming that it's just their building and not the whole block. Probably an easy fix. Much easier than, say, a transformer blowing up. Still, Mahiru is human, and any amount of time spent in near total darkness is much more inconvenient to him than it is to Kuro. And more than that...

“Stay there,” he says, not that he has to. Mahiru has completely frozen up in the center of their living room. The look on his face... It makes his heart squeeze. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of the dark.” 

It sounds callous, he knows it does, but that’s the point. A flicker of annoyance crosses the other’s face and he feels a bit of smug relief.

“Of course not! Jeez, help me find some candles and a flashlight.”

“Wait, don’t--”

A soft, but heartfelt, swear meets his ears. He resists the nearly overpowering urge to roll his eyes.

“That’s why I told you not to move...”

“Ugh... I wish I could see in the dark like you, Kuro... The only thing I can make out is your eyes.”

“My eyes?”

Without thinking, he lifts his hand to one. Somehow he had forgotten about the glow they give off, and now he's newly self-conscious of them in a way he hasn't been in quite a long time. _Isn’t that scary? Isn’t that frightening? Don’t you think I’m a monster?_

He pushes those thoughts away in favor of grabbing Mahiru by the elbow and leading him over to the couch he had previously been parked on, pushing the boy down by the shoulders to sit.

“Stay. There. I mean it. The last thing I need is you covered in bumps and bruises from your oh-so-aggressive furniture.”

It’s kind of nice, being able to so openly observe the faces Mahiru makes in response to his teasing without the other _knowing_ he’s so enamored with every shift and change. Right now, Mahiru's brows are pulled down in irritation, and while he can't necessarily make it out, Kuro would bet money on the fact that he's blushing just the teeniest, tiniest bit.

“Just go get the--”

This time, the flash of lightning reaching from the gaps in the curtains lights the whole place in stark black and white relief for one heart stopping moment before a boom loud enough to rattle every window in the building follows, and suddenly, lithe arms hiding strength he could never hope to replicate (the strength of a hero in the making, of somehow who painstakingly sifts through the pieces of shattered porcelain that make up an individual and carefully set them back into place where he can, laying a foundation of growth and healing even if it leaves his hands cut and bloody. Sometimes he wants to grab Mahiru's wrists and yank him away, but he knows better than to try to stop him. He's not the person who can save him. Not yet, not yet--), arms that he could snap with ease, are wrapped around his middle. They don’t let go. He can feel the whole of Mahiru trembling against him.

A sigh. Mahiru stills under the hand he places on the back of his head, unaware of the thoughts swirling around and around in his Servamp's head.

“Scoot over.”

The command is followed easily, too easily for the stubbornness that he knows Mahiru holds within him, but a more distant rumble makes the boy flinch. Kuro plops down gracelessly beside him, draws Mahiru close to his side, and tucks that mop of brown against his shoulder. For a moment, there’s nothing but the sound of the storm waging war outside. Briefly, he thinks of Lawless and Licht, battling the elements.

“... How come you never told me you were afraid of thunderstorms?”

Mahiru shifts, but doesn’t pull away. Kuro strokes the back of his neck with a thumb, slow and soothing.

“It’s stupid...”

“So is being afraid of the vacuum cleaner.”

He feels the faintest of twitches pull at his lips when Mahiru snorts soft amusement against his throat.

“Kuro... I...” 

Mahiru’s hesitant, and he feels a stab of annoyance, a thought of, _Can't you trust me with this at least?_ , one that disappears quickly when those calloused hands grip more tightly at the front of his jacket.

“‘m sorry... It’s just... It’s hard to talk about... Not even Uncle Tooru...”

Oh. _Oh._

Quietly and without comment, he wraps Mahiru up in a secure hug, feels the other relax against him in a way that fills him with warmth that's starting to become more commonplace than not.

“... Are you afraid of what he’ll say?” He really can’t imagine the man being anything but understanding and supportive, but he’s also intimately aware of the lies the mind will tell, the worst case scenarios that are so utterly ridiculous but feel so _real_ in the moment before you push those words out.

“I don’t... Think so...?” Mahiru jerks again when another roll of thunder sounds and Kuro moves so he’s lying back, dragging the other to lay atop his chest, ear over his heart so that the irregular, slow thump of a creature that’s only half alive can maybe, hopefully, drown out some of the cacophony. Initially, his human partner goes stiff, then curls up in the space between the back of the couch and Kuro’s side, tangles their legs together and goes still. Like this, Mahiru _feels_ just as fragile as he hardly ever looks. It’s a bit hard to reconcile it with the bold, shounen-protagonist try-hard he so often comes off as. It easily lines up with the way he had felt after the collapse of C3, when Kuro had been the only thing propping his unconscious body up, and the agony that was waiting for him to open his eyes again, battered, bruised, but alive. “I don’t know... I think I’m just... Ashamed. It’s so silly. I should be over this... I’m sixteen.”

“And I’m practically ancient. Still freaked out over that army of Roombas at Gear’s place... Seriously, why does he have so many...?”

Another giggle eases his heart further, and he lets his hand card through puppy-brown hair, feels Mahiru sigh contently against him.

“Kuro... Can we...?”

“Yeah. We can stay like this.”

He wants to ask if Mahiru is afraid, but somehow, he feels like he already knows the answer. Knows the reason why Mahiru never seems to waver even in the face of staggering odds, why he's able to pick himself back up.

If he were able to peer into the heart of this reckless, stupid human that has become his whole world and ask him, _Are you afraid?_

Mahiru's heart would answer him, _Not when I'm with you._


End file.
